On this day, May 12, 1982, a Spanish priest, Juan Fernandez Krohn, attacked and wounded Pope John Paul II with a bayonet in Portugal.
His attack came a year after the pope was wounded by Turkish gunman Mehmet Ali Agca in Rome.
Recommended Stories
During his trial, Krohn said he opposed the reforms of Vatican II and that he believed Pope John Paul II was a secret communist agent of the Soviet Union.
Krohn served three years in prison. He was arrested again in 2000 after he climbed over a barricade and accused the approaching Spanish King Juan Carlos of murdering his brother. He received a fine.
– Scott McCabe
